Psychological impact of COVID-19 on speech and language therapists working with adult dysphagia: A national survey.
Rachel Rouse, Julie Regan
PMID 34331499WHAT IT FOUND
Most Irish SLTs working with adult dysphagia screened positive for depression, anxiety, stress or PTSD during the first pandemic wave.
Younger therapists, those with less experience and those not living with children were at highest risk. Managers should target support to these groups.
Key findings
01Sixty percent of respondents screened positive for depression, anxiety, stress or PTSD.
02Younger age, less clinical experience and not living with children were significantly associated with screening positive for psychological distress.
03Qualitative themes identified fear of infection, uncertainty regarding policies, role changes and increased workload as key stressors.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study used snowball sampling, so the response rate could not be calculated and there is a risk of selection bias. The survey did not assess participants' pre-pandemic psychological status, so it is unknown if distress was new or existing. The survey did not ask if participants themselves had severe COVID-19 risk factors or became infected, which could have influenced results. The cross-sectional design cannot establish causality between the pandemic factors and psychological distress.
Declared interests
None declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume these prevalence rates apply to all SLTs or other disciplines. The sample was small, self-selected via snowball sampling, and limited to Irish SLTs working with adult dysphagia during a specific early-pandemic window, so the findings may not generalize to other contexts or populations.